A couple of months after the RedDoorz hotel management and booking chain announced that it had suffered from a significant data breach as a result of hacker activity, it appears that the cyber-criminals have got around to putting the stolen personal data online, offering user details for the highest bidder.
According to the website Bleeping Computer, the group behind the theft have put up example records relating to 587 individuals, to show the extent of the data they hold. There are almost 6 million in total.
Looking at the incident for Digital Journal, Robert Prigge, CEO of Jumio says that such an attack was the consequence of a weak security feature. He notes: “As an unauthorized person was able to access RedDoorz’s database of millions of user emails, hashed passwords and other personal data, it’s clear stronger authentication methods are needed.”
Covering the vulnerability in more detail, Prigge adds: “Fraudsters can decrypt the hashed passwords and leverage bots or credential stuffing to try logging in across a number of other websites in search of an opening – granting them access to far more than a hotel reservation site. In addition, cybercriminals can combine the exposed data with other available information on the dark web to access additional user accounts that were set up with this information (which could include social media profiles, health insurance portals, banking applications and more).”
Outlining the implications, Prigge states: “One person’s unauthorized access ultimately puts millions of victims at risk of having funds transferred, benefits stolen and fraudulent communications made on their behalf. Enterprises must recognize the danger of using passwords and other outdated methods of authentication. Biometric authentication (leveraging a user’s unique biological traits to verify identity) ensures only authorized users can access their accounts.”
